There's No Love In the Deathzone (BL) novel Chapter 618

Chapter 618: Chapter 612. At the side of the Cliff

"Ah, this place is even better than I initially thought," Zein shaded his eyes with his hands, staring into the horizon.

"The sun does make everything look better," Bassena agreed.

The sky far away was still dark, but the sea was sparkling beautifully under the bright sun. The Sea Serpent had returned to the sea and swam happily. It looked a bit lonely before, but perhaps its mood became better after meeting Zein in the lake. Cute. Zein recalled the soul nuzzling him before; a child soul that had just been reborn.

"A kid...wouldn’t that mean the Sea Serpent will grow even bigger?"

"That would be a spectacle," Bassena chuckled. "It’ll be better if more sea creatures are there to keep it company. Hmm...should we try moving some from the Southern Sea?"

"Can we do that?"

"We’ll have to consult an expert first, but I think it’s possible."

Zein nodded and smiled widely, walking along the cliff and waving his hand as the Sea Serpent raised its head to let out a cheerful shriek as a greeting. Bassena pressed his twitching lips; he had no idea if he wanted to smile or shed tears, but he was extremely, extremely happy.

Just seeing that smile, coming easily to Zein now, was like a blissful dream come true. He smiled as much as other people who had been living in a green-zone all their lives; casual, easy, unforced. He used to only smile and laugh at something that truly made him happy, but now...even just looking at splashing water and rustling leaves curled his lips upward.

Bassena cleared his throat slightly. "Do you like this place?"

Zein stopped and looked around. It was still a raw field, with haphazardly grown grass and plants, and uneven trees all over the hill. The only flowers were of the wild grasses, and there were several bald patches as well as boulders spreading unevenly all over the ground.

His lips curled. "Isn’t it obvious?"

"Good, since I take this place as my reward," Bassena nodded in satisfaction.

As promised in the contract, the members of the operation could choose between a sum of money or a piece of undeveloped land in the former Deathzone. The amount of money and land was proportional to their contribution during the operation, and as the Field Commander, Bassena had enough points to ask for a whole cliff as his reward.

Zein smiled. "I thought as much," he chuckled. How couldn’t he, when Bassena had been hinting about it so much? He looked around and smirked, pointing at the path where they came from. "Then, should I take the hill? We’ll have a whole estate that way."

The cliff was just that--the cliff. But it was located on top of the hill with a forest surrounding it. Bassena could just buy the hill on top of the reward, but he didn’t have to if they used Zein’s points. Bassena might be the Commander, and someone who drove the end to the Fallen Star. But as the one who got rid of the whole miasma, Zein had an even higher contribution point than him.

Bassena pressed his slightly trembling lips. Did Zein realize what that sounded like? Having a whole estate together? It wasn’t like the lakeside house, which Zein inherited from his parents. And it wasn’t like Bassena’s penthouse, which he inherited from his mother.

"Yeah, that sounds good," Bassena muttered quietly, fiddling with his coat pocket.

"What are you going to do with this place?" Zein asked while walking slightly away from the edge, toward the historical flat boulder.

Bassena turned to look at the sea. "I’m going to turn my dream into reality."

Dream...Zein hummed as he recalled the content of Bassena’s dream. Blue sky, emerald sea, and...

"About the house?"

"Yeah..."

Zein took a seat on top of the flat boulder and looked at the esper, whose amber eyes seemed as warm as the approaching twilight. It felt good; the warmth of the sun, the presence of his lover...Zein leaned back, propping himself with his arm. "Tell me more about the house." _{freeweɓnovēl.coɱ}

Bassena chuckled and closed his eyes, drawing the picture that became clearer and clearer each day. A house with two stories up and an attic, with white paint and blue roofs. A big balcony with a small garden and a cozy patio where they could watch the sea while lounging with a cup of tea. It didn’t have to be big, enough for the two of them and their family. Maybe for Zein’s twelve siblings to visit.

"Should we have a boat too?" Bassena tilted his head after his short presentation ended. "A small yacht."

"Seems good," Zein would never reject any kind of water transportation. He secretly wanted to have that floating fortress still docked on the ruin of the port city, but...something for leisure seemed to be more fitting for a safer zone like this. "That kid will be happy."

Bassena laughed as they watched the Sea Serpent swim away, perhaps toward the port city where more attraction could be seen; ship, watchtower, assessment crew...

As the laughter died down, Bassena took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, as if to gain courage. "Initially, I’d like to bring you here once the house is already built."

"...why?"

"Because I want to give it to you as a gift," Bassena smiled. "The house and the land."

"That’s mighty generous of you," Zein tilted his head. He didn’t sound displeased, unlike before. Bassena wanted to laugh at how difficult it was to give the man just a single gift in the past, calling it a waste.

Ah, how much things had changed. "I need to spend that much if I want to take your hand."

Zein raised his brow, but he didn’t say anything. Bassena, after pausing for a second, let out a big, heavy sigh.

"Haa...I had this big plan, you know," Bassena pursed his lips, as if whining, and spread his arms. "I’d build this house and clear the yard, make a nice garden and comfortable patio where we could look at the sea," he paused, laughing softly while pointing at a relatively clean spot. "I’d scatter flower petals, set up strings of lights, prepare a candle-lit dinner, and make a firework show--the whole thing, you know, like in those movies."

Zein wanted to say that he didn’t really watch those kinds of movies, but he reckoned it wasn’t the right thing to say for the occasion--so he just smiled. That smile contained a subtle blush that reflected the tingle in his heart, but Bassena was busy looking at the horizon to witness it.

"But if I waited for the so-called perfect moment, it would take months and...I couldn’t do that anymore," Bassena clenched the hands in his pockets.

Not after he saw Zein lying on his last breath while feeling all helpless. Not after feeling his whole world crashing down in purgatory.

"As you said before, things rarely go the way we planned, and I realized that...a perfect moment is not something we planned, but something we create through action, so..."

He turned around and looked at Zein; his nervous smile shaded from the lowering sun behind his back. "I’m done planning things," he said, walking toward the guide. "It doesn’t matter anymore if it’s not perfect. All that matters is I have the perfect person."

Zein raised his head, watching all kinds of emotions flickering across the esper’s face; anxiety, self-doubt, nervousness, but also...excitement and anticipation.